As someone who has seen the last days of the Asaf Jahi rule, the creation of the erstwhile State of Andhra Pradesh, and finally its bifurcation, activist and freedom fighter B. Narsing Rao makes a point when he says that the period from 1938 to 1948 was crucial in the history of then Hyderabad State.
“At one point I used to see the last Nizam, Mir Osman Ali Khan, almost daily at Abids. He used to exercise power, but there was a peculiar situation which needs to be understood,” recalled Mr. Rao, addressing students, faculty members and others at a symposium on
‘The Last Phase of Asaf Jahis (Nizam Rule): An Appraisal’, at Osmania University here on Thursday.
‘Telugu suppressed’
Drawing a contrast between the Asaf Jahi and Qutub Shahi rulers, Mr. Rao said that while the former made Urdu the medium of instruction in education and suppressed Telugu, the Qutub Shahi rulers encouraged Telugu.
“I feel sorry for what has happened to Urdu in India, but it was a ramification of making it the medium of instruction,” he observed.
Mr. Rao was of the opinion that English as a medium of instruction would have been better, as there were people from different regions, speaking different languages, living in the erstwhile Hyderabad State.
He also felt that Bahadur Yar Jung from the Majilis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (MIM) wanted to keep Hyderabad State separate from India.
“Bahadur Yar Jung propagated that every Muslim here was a ‘Badshah’, so then what about the others?
Nizam’s admission
There were efforts being made to find a peaceful solution, but the MIM and British did not agree,” observed Mr. Rao, further stating that towards the end, Qasim Rizvi from the Razakaars said that there was no question of Hyderabad being a part of India.
“Common sense tells us that Hyderabad could not become part of Pakistan. Osman Ali Khan, later in one sentence, said that “he was misguided”, recalled Mr Rao.
A victim of the Razakaars, he said that the ‘Police Action’ by the Government of India could have been avoided.
“Religious fanaticism wreaked havoc, and Hyderabad was a victim of Muslim fanaticism. Whether it is ‘ghar wapsi’ or that, both are bad for society,” said Mr. Rao.
Activist and freedom fighter B. Narsing Rao says that the period from 1938 to 1948 was crucial in the history of then Hyderabad State
